The very best things we ate in Calgary in 2024

2024 was a bumper year for Calgary’s restaurant scene, with dozens of new spots opening their doors and bringing hundreds of brand-new dishes for Calgarians to enjoy.

There was no shortage of deliciousness to be found in the city, but we haven’t been able to get some of the bites we had this year out of our heads since. In fact, many warranted a second, third or even fourth taste.

So consider this the most delicious retrospective of some of the best eats we enjoyed in Calgary in 2024.

Bar Gigi’s Cabbage Skewers

Bar Gigi opened to a lot of buzz earlier this year, and the good news is that it very much lives up to the hype. It can sometimes be hard to score a seat at the tiny restaurant, which opened inside the old Halibut Hut on Edmonton Trail, but it’s a must-visit.

Any of the dishes we tried at Bar Gigi could make it on this list, but the cabbage skewers just pipped the others to the post. The cabbage was meticulously sliced, charred to perfection, and served in a sesame dressing with a good dollop of super-hot mustard. It was sweet, savoury, and spicy, demonstrating just how delicious cabbage can be.

Bastion Burger’s O.G. Smashy

Bastion Burger has earned itself a cult following of burger lovers in Calgary since it started as a food truck in 2023. Being a food truck, it wasn’t always the easiest to track down, but it finally happened for us this year.

We tried the O.G. Smashy, which features two patties, shredduce, American cheese, caramelized onions and burger sauce, and it quickly became one of our favourite burgers in the city. The patties are smashed so thinly with crispy, lacy edges that contrast with the soft bun.

The good news is that it’s now way easier to get your hands on Bastion Burger as it’s opened at Pin Bar on 17th Avenue SW.

DOPO’s Raviolo

It was sad to say goodbye to D.O.P. at its original location on 1st Street SW this year, but the silver lining is that we got the brand-new evolution of the concept, DOPO.

The Marda Loop restaurant captures the magic of D.O.P. but with a reimagined menu. We were pleased to see that the enormous raviolo was still present, and the size of this pasta dish alone is impressive (it is literally the size of your head). It’s also just so flavourful.

From the perfectly runny egg yolk inside to the slurp-worthy brown butter sauce, pasta doesn’t get much better than this.

Doughnut Party’s Bernadette

Edmonton-based Doughnut Party finally opened its first Calgary location earlier this year, and it has quickly become a go-to for sweet treats in Inglewood.

While the menu is rotating, one we go for time and time again is the Bernadette. It’s almost like a fancier take on a glazed donut, with a hint of lavender and rosemary, a sprinkling of sea salt and a drizzle of chocolate. It’s sweet but not overly so and oh-so-tasty.

Masa Mama’s Mac Mama Taco

Calgary has plenty of amazing taco spots to check out but a relatively new addition is Masa Mama. Brought to life by the team behind the popular pop-up Con Mi Taco, Masa Mama is a modern taqueria with food taking inspiration from around the world.

Our top pick is the Mac Mama, which combines the very best parts of both a burger and taco and blends them into one delicious snack. The juicy beef and bacon patty is topped with American cheese, mac sauce and shredded lettuce, but instead of a bun, diners can enjoy a soft, fluffy duck fat tortilla.

Rosie’s Burgers Banana Pudding

Ontario burger joint Rosie’s Burgers has just opened its very first Calgary outpost, and while the burgers are pretty great and well worth a try, we need to talk about the banana pudding.

The smooth vanilla custard is topped with heapings of fresh, sliced banana, but the real game-changer here is the graham cookie crumble on top, which gives the dessert a nice crunch. It’s a dessert lover’s dream so run to get one for yourself.

Scozzafava’s Deli Italian Combo

After gaining a huge following as a pop-up in the city, Scozzafava’s Deli finally opened its permanent location on 17th Avenue earlier this year.

While pretty much every sandwich we’ve tried has been top tier (special shout out to the Chicken Parm), our very favourite is the Italian Combo. Stuffed to the brim with salami, mortadella, cappocollo, fior de latte, calabrian chilli spread, pesto and roasted red peppers, every single bite is so flavourful.

What have been your favourite eats in Calgary this year? Let us know in the comments.

Still hungry? Discover Dished Calgary on TikTok

You might also like:
• Two Alberta spots named on prestigious world's best restaurants list
• Celebrity restaurant sightings in Calgary that had us starstruck this year
• 70 years strong: How the Blackfoot Truckstop Diner became a local legend